Volunteer teachers at school

Teaching has resumed at Radzambo High School, partly due to the hard work and initiatives implemented by a local traditional leader, Chief Livhuwani Matsila. Chief Matsila approached the organisation, Gift of the Givers, asking them to send volunteer teachers to assist the pupils. He also assisted volunteers to repair the damage caused by protestors last month.

Radzombo High School was one of the Vuwani schools targeted by protestors during the violence that erupted last month. Angry community members set several schools alight to protest against the incorporation into a new municipality.

On Monday, Chief Matsila helped community volunteers to fix the school buildings. The group repaired some of the roofs and fixed the broken windows. The Department of Education has previously supplied temporary classes for the children.

Chief Matsila said that children should go to school and should not wait for demarcation issues to be sorted out, since they must put education first in order to acquire skills to run the country.

He approached several donors to help repair the burnt school and Gift of the Givers responded. This charity organisation offered to help with repairs and also sent volunteer teachers to help with subjects such as English, Life Science and other key subjects.

Apart from burning the school buildings, the perpetrators also broke each and every window in every class. Chief Matsila said the school also had structural defects and he called on the business sector to assist in improving conditions at the school.

On Monday, about half of the Grade 12 pupils enrolled at the school attended classes. Mulalo Maladze, one of the learners, praised the chief, saying it was not good for them to be just sitting at home. Andani Mudadzi (18) said they were coping, but she welcomed the volunteer teachers. Pupils from different villages around the Vuwani area arrived at the school to register for the classes.

It was also clear on Monday that the frustrations of the community are far from over. The children were expected to return to school last Monday (30th), but parents were worried that their children could be attacked on their way to school or that the schools could be burnt down.

“I feel bad because we were supposed to write exams, but there are no teachers and the learners are not coming to school. The mobile classes are there, but people are not coming to school,” one pupil said.

Date:10 June 2016

By: Kaizer Nengovhela

Kaizer Nengovhela started writing stories for Limpopo Mirror in 2000. Prior to that he had a five year stint at Phala-Phala FM as sports presenter. In 2005 Kaizer received an award from the province's premier as Best Sports Presenter. The same year he was also nominated as Best Sports Reporter by the Makhado Municipality. Kaizer was awarded the Mathatha Tsedu award in 2014.

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